Harters

There's much to recommend that. It's got hermit appeal. I go some way towards it. For example, I don't carry a mobile phone. And I don't use the internet at all when I'm away on holiday.

Thanks for posting those definitions. So, based on that, extortion is definitely the right word to describe what the porters are up to.. Threat that your bag might go missing unless money changes hands. My apologies for wrongly describing it as a bribe in #29.

Here's the Miami porters thread I referred to Extortion is the right word https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/2953787-tipping-porters/#comment-65813755

Toscana is the only one of Oceania's restaurants that passes our "holiday restaurant" test - if it was near home would we become regulars. On Vista (and previous cruises), we've always gone the traditional Italian four course route - starter, pasta, main course, dessert. We order a small portion pasta course. Their bread basket is the best on board to my mind - I don't think we ever leave any. Worth a note that they do the American thing of offering olive oil and balsamic vinegar to dip your bread in. It was a surprise on our first cruise as we'd never seen it before in the UK or Italy, so gave it a try. We decline it now. FWIW, earlier in the year on Vista, one of us ordered stuffed artichokes, gnocchi with pesto, veal escalope with roast potatoes and the Toscana quartet for dessert. The other had roast vegetable salad, lobster risotto, Dover sole with potatoes and the berry tiramisu.

I think the thing that most resonated with me about cruise related tipping was the mentions on CC of the porters at Miami port pretty much demanding a tip "to ensure your bag didnt go missing or get damaged". It's outrageous demand for a bribe - but I still coughed up $10.

You may well get a better response if you post this to the RC forum as well.

Correction: Whilst P & S published my Cheshires book (and two others on the war), the Manchesters book was published by Reveille Press.

And that's now it's modern name. Some years back, each Belgian province was designated as either Dutch speaking or French speaking. Flanders is one of the Dutch speaking ones - you'll find all the road signs, etc, now in the Dutch version. The whole thing is a touchy political issue in the country, with the main political party in Flanders campaigning for independence. It's often said, with some justification, that every battalion of the British Army fought in the Ypres area during the war. My grandfather's unit, the 17th Manchesters, played a significant part in the attack on the first day of the Third Battle of Ypres - on 31/7/17. My local Territorial Army battalion, the 6th Cheshires also attacked that day - it proved to be Stockport's worst day for casualties in the whole war. My histories of both units are published by Pen & Sword.

Good point worth sharing. Our guy on Vista earlier in the year always seemed ready for a few words but, on a couple of occasions, he mentioned how busy he was with the number of cabins to be looked after. We can take hints

The North Wales town of Llandudno, is often "invaded" by goats which usually live on the nearby headland. They started coming in to town during the Covid lockdown when there were obviously very few people around. We visit the town fairly often but I've never seen a goat on the streets. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-66108809

True, in our experience. In three cruises, we've never had a problem getting a two-top around 8pm. Occasionally, not on the day we first thought of.

Although with O moving back to a time not only before Simply More but even before OLife, then maybe they should just put Jacques in, as it presumably appeals to the demographics of twenty years ago.

I've had goat a number of times, both in Spain and here in the UK (the latter both at home and in restaurants). It's sort of like lamb but with much more flavour. More mutton than lamb, I reckon, and all the better for it. For my taste, it lends itself more to stew type dishes. It's certainly more forgiving cooked that way. although chops and roasts are fine if you take good care not to overcook it. Pretty much the same as cooking mutton or hogget in that respect.

I havent but I'm unsurprised that it happens. Relatively poor crew members tell a story to relatively wealthy customers about how hard their lives are. Supported by the knowledge the world over in the hospitality industry that many Americans like to tip at a high level at pretty much any given opportunity. I used to play on a now defunct food forum where most contributors were American. Tipping threads regularly cropped up and it took quite a while to not be surprised at the things, in general life, that Americans are likely tip for and the level at which they'd do so. I believe it's a cultural thing as much as a practical thing and it makes folk feel good about themselves that they are in a position to do so.

Possibly because many customers from my part of the world would regard 8pm as "dinner time". Although, as we've got older, we now eat earlier at home at 7.30 and fairly often similar at restaurants But I accept that Oceania is an American line catering to the tastes and expectations of Americans. I know many Americans like to eat early and I recall a recentish thread where a goodly number of contributors expressed a wish that O's restaurants opened earlier than 6.30. I'd certainly agree with them opening as early as possible - it would better ensure I can get a reservation at a more appropriate later time. It's a bit similar to some restaurants I know in Spain. Turn up for a reservation at 8 and you'll see a few North Europeans already on dessert but most of us will be at an early stage of our meal or just arriving. By the time, we're getting to dessert, the locals start arriving.

I take principled stands about buying products. I'm now 74 and, throughout my adult life, I've not knowingly bought products from a particular country. Does it make a jot of difference? Probably not, but I feel better for it. Although, I also didnt buy South African goods during the apartheid boycott and I like to believe that it helped to bring it to an end. And maybe it actually did.

Not necessarily. Oceania's "sommeliers" are not sommeliers in the sense that the land based restaurant industry recognises them. In the main, these folk are just servers who serve alcoholic drinks in the ship's restaurants. They appear to have no particular skill or knowledge about the wines available. Most folk appear to just have glasses of wine, rather than bottles. I can't see any reason why the food servers cannot also pour the wine available by the glass.

What would you suggest would be a practical solution? There are only a limited number of tables and a limited number of hours. If you have more people than chairs wanting to eat at 6.30 then some folk are not going to get what they want. Maybe not have the staggered reservation days - so they just open up reservations to everyone, say, 45 days out and let everyone take their chances getting their choice. Or base access on when you booked the cruise, rather than level of cabin? By the by, when we first cruised, back in the late 80s and early 90s, with P & O, the line operated dinner at two sittings. You could state a preference but would not know your allocation till you got on board. If there was over demand, allocations were made by date you booked. That was fine until the third cruise which we had not booked very early. Found ourselves allocated to the first sitting which I think was 6.30. Much to early for us (almost still afternoon) and it was a major reason why we never cruised with them again and, in fact, didnt take another major cruise holiday till we discovered Oceania in 2017.

Our cruise isn't till next June but I'm starting to plan for it (it's the current miserable weather here that's making me look forward to next summer). We have an overnight in Bordeaux and it seems an ideal opportunity to sample some local food. That "ideal opportunity" would suggest an classic "old school" bistro/brasserie type place, rather than an upmarket tasting menu set-up or "small plates". Obviously gotta be French food. Any suggestions welcomed. TIA John

Our first cruise with O was in 2017. I've no recollection that "cruise only" was available to UK customers in the time we've been cruising with them. If it was, it was kept very well hidden. It was always OLife and then SM. Maybe yet another difference about how O treats its customers who are not North American.

A prompt reply from Guest Services senior manager, covering the UK (and elsewhere). As expected, it pretty much just repeats what's been said in the company announcement. But, at least, O won't be able to say "no-one complained". Here's the reply Thank you for your email, and your feedback on our upcoming changes to our brand offering. We do appreciate your feedback and thank you for this. I can only apologise that you feel the upcoming changes are a step backward in a negative light. Overall, this is a move back (but not backwards) It is moving the brand back to one of our founding principles - which is the Oceania Cruises promise that guests can travel the world the way they like – Your World. Your Way. Many of our guests found simply MORE to be limiting in how they wished to enjoy their time both on board and ashore. Simply put, we were automatically including amenities that many guests would prefer to have the option to partake in. The inclusions of our beverage package and credit toward shore excursions were valued by some, whereas the inclusion of gratuities provides a value for all guests who enjoy passionate service. The move to roll this out globally will also ensure that all guests, regardless of the country they may reside in will enjoy the same Baseline inclusions and onboard experience. We will of course continue to offer additional amenities which guests can choose to add should they wish to do so, and this we believe will allow guest to truly tailor-make their Oceania experience to suit them, rather than have unwanted amenities forced upon them. Our Your World Included value promise, unlike simply MORE, is not a promotion but rather a cornerstone of our value foundation that helps define “ultra-premium” cruising. The embedded value of the Oceania Cruises experience contains amenities not typically included on other lines – specialty dining; specialty coffees, teas, Vero Water®, and sodas; hi-speed WiFi powered by Starlink; and gratuities for stateroom attendants, butlers, and dining waitstaff. With regards to pricing, Cruise fares and any related tactical promotions on or after October 1, 2024, will continue to be based on demand and how each sailing is performing relative to expectations. I would like to thank you again for taking the time to bring your thoughts to us. whilst I sincerely regret your disappointment, I do hope that you will find, as we move forward, that our new brand promise not only provides you with more options, but also that it continues to provide an experience that is fantastic value for our guests, regardless of which options they choose to add to their booking.

I works as you'd expect for a restaurant. Menu on the table. Server takes your order and brings your food. As with the Terrace, trying to get an alcoholic drink can be a bit of a trial.

Nothing really to choose between the two, IMO. But, if forced to choose, I'd probably go for #1. That's because (a) we visit Tenerife each year for three weeks so not much appeal of a day in port and (b) whilst we also visit Mallorca regularly, we stay in the north of the island and it's a while since we've had a day in Palma.

The Real Greek is a small national chain. It's recently opened a branch near me and we had a decent lunch there earlier in the year while out shopping (it's at the local mall). https://www.hungryonion.org/t/trafford-centre-greater-manchester-the-real-greek/37827

That is what I find so weird about the change. I recall the discussions here when SM was being introduced. Viking as a significant competitor was often mentioned as the reason behind O's move. To move away from that, and effectively move even further back in time is strange. Does it mean O has given up wanting to compete for that customer base and is content to work for the demographics of twenty years back? Well before my time, so I've no idea what that demographic actually was.